Transition Booklet 2018 to Download an Electronic Version Visit
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Opportunities for Children with Statements of Special Educational Needs or Education Health Care Plans in Birmingham POST 16 Transition Booklet 2018 To download an electronic version visit: www.birmingham.gov.uk/senar A great city to grow up in 1 Introduction Transition to Post 16 Placement for Students with Statements of Special Educational Needs/ Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plans in Birmingham 2018 Dear parent/carer, We know that your son/daughter’s move into further education can be an anxious time. This booklet has been put together for all young people who have a statement of special educational needs (SEN) or Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan to help them through Post16 transition. It includes information about Post 16 educational settings in Birmingham and about how to express a preference for the placements that they wish to attend. On 1 September 2014 a new system of assessing and making educational provision for students with special educational needs was introduced. To transfer a student from a statement to an EHC Plan involves a “transfer review”. This requires us, the LA, to complete an EHC needs assessment. This will involve three steps: • Step 1 – a transfer review meeting • Step 2 – your son/daughter will receive a draft EHC Plan • Step 3 – the final EHC Plan will be issued Student transferring to Year group Term for EHC Legal deadline for EHC Plan Review Meeting EHC Plan to be transferred In year 11, transfer from Year 11 Within the first half term 31 March 2018 school to a school sixth in Autumn 2017 form, post 16 provider or apprenticeship KS5 – year 13 and 14, Year 13/14 Within the first half term 31 March 2018 transfers to post 16 provider in Autumn 2017 or apprenticeship Leaving Youth Custody Year 13 and under On release 20 weeks from start of the process. birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 2 A large proportion of young people with a statement of SEN attend local Post 16 placements where their needs are well met with the education, training and support provided. Therefore, if your son/daughter is considering a placement at a local college or sixth form, section 21 of this booklet provides details about these individual placements. Information is also provided about specialist Post 16 placements; these are detailed in sections 23, 24 and 25 of the booklet. If a student is seeking work (vocational) based training, then section 27 will give them more details of relevant training providers. We have also created a user friendly document called ‘Next Steps’ to help young people through this process. Your son/daughter will have been given advice on the type of placement that is suitable for them through discussions with their current placement at their transfer review meeting. If they are interested in a particular Post 16 placement they will need to contact the placement directly to arrange a visit. Please be aware that there is a dual process in Birmingham this year which means that as well as putting your son/daughter’s post 16 preferences on the form included within this pack, you should also apply directly to the post 16 setting for a place. I would advise that your son/daughter seek support from the Special Education Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) and the Careers Adviser at their current placement. This will help them make an informed decision about their future placement and express a suitable preference. If, after reading this booklet, you still need further help or advice then you can contact the LA’s Special Educational Needs Assessment & Review Team (SENAR) on 0121 303 1888. You will be informed of the Post 16 placement that your son/daughter has been allocated by 31 March 2018. I wish your son/daughter every success in the future. Yours sincerely, Jill Crosbie Acting Assistant Director, SEND birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 3 Contents Introduction by Jill Crosbie, Interim Assistant Director 2 1. Timeline for the SEN Post 16 transfer process 5 2. How the Post 16 transfer process will work 6 3. Meeting your son/daughter’s needs 7 4. Finding out about Birmingham placements 8 5. Who should complete a preference form 8 6. Not submitting a preference form 9 7. How to complete the preference form 10 8. Applying for a Post 16 placement in other Local Authorities 11 9. Applying for an Independent Specialist Provider 11 10. Transitions Into Adulthood (Adult Services) 14 11. Home address 15 12. How places are allocated 16 13. Notifying you of the allocated placement 17 14. Appeals and amendments 17 15. Special Education Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) 17 16. Travel Assistance 18 17. Raising Participation Age (RPA) 19 18. Careers Advice and Information/Support 20 19. Not in Education, Employment or Training in Birmingham (NEET) 21 20. How do qualifications compare? 22 21. Contacts 23 22. Details of Mainstream Secondary Schools with Sixth Form Centres 26 23. Post 16 Specialist Vocational Colleges 37 24. Details of Special Sixth Form Centres 38 25. Resource Bases 42 26. Independent Specialist Providers in Birmingham 46 27. Post 19 Providers 47 28. Vocational Training Providers in Birmingham 48 29. List of courses available at Vocational Training Providers 50 30. General Further Education (GFEs) & Sixth Form Colleges 52 31. Open Days 56 32. List of courses available at GFE Colleges 58 33. Your son/daughter’s guide to data protection 63 34. Career Action Plan 65 birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 4 1. Timeline for the SEN Post 16 transfer process Which? What Happens? Autumn Term 2017 onwards 1. Student/parent needs to attends open days at Post 16 placements and apply directly to the Post 16 setting. 2. Post 16 placements need to inform SENAR of all applications received from young people with SEN/EHCP. By 20 October 2017 1. School Careers Adviser arranges a full careers guidance interview and issues a Career Action Plan for all those with a Statement of SEN/EHC Plan (template to be completed is on www.mycareinbirmingham.org.uk.) 2. School/Placement SENCO arranges the Transfer Review meeting in order to complete the Transition Review form/ populate the EHCP. 3. Student/parent completes the Post 16 Preference Form and send to LA. 4. School/Placement sends the populated EHC template, Career Action plan, up-to-date school reports, Transition Review Report form and Student/Parent’s Preference Form to [email protected]. Between 20th October 2017 SENAR will consult with Post 16 placements about your son/ and 31st January 2018 daughter’s preferred options. SENAR will also consult with other appropriate placements that are in your son/daughter’s local community if necessary. W/C 19th February 2018 Notice of Amendment and letter of intent will be sent you, identifying any proposed amendments to the EHC Plan and the intended Post 16 setting to be named in Section I of the EHC Plan. You will have 15 days to make written representations to the proposals. On 30th March 2018 Final/amended final EHC Plan will be issued to name your child’s allocated Post 16 provision for September 2018. birmingham.gov.uk A great city to grow up in 5 2. How the Post 16 transfer process will work As your son/daughter has a Statement of SEN or EHC Plan and is due to move on to a Post 16 placement (e.g. college) in September 2018, they will have the opportunity to state their placement preference(s) using the Placement Preference Form in this booklet. What your son/daughter needs to know: • Your son/daughter must complete a Birmingham LA Placement Preference Form specifically for learners with a Statement of SEN/EHC Plan. • If any of your son/daughter’s preferences are for a placement in another LA they must still complete the Birmingham LA Placement Preference Form and name the placement(s) in Part 3 of the form. • Birmingham LA is required to consult the Post 16 placement and the relevant LA, if it is not a Birmingham LA placement, before it can be named in your son/daughter’s EHC Plan. • A Post 16 placement will be allocated to your son/daughter in accordance with the SEN Code of Practice and the criteria set out in this booklet. • Your son/daughter will be given the opportunity to make representations and to discuss any concerns they have with their SENAR Officer about the place allocated. Their name and contact details will be in their notification letter. • If your son/daughter disagree with the offer they can appeal to the SEN Tribunal Service; the contact details will be included in the letter sent with their Final Amended EHC Plan. Please note: The Children and Family Act 2014 states that, when amending/transferring to an EHC Plan, LAs must make arrangements to enable your son/daughter to say where they would prefer to receive their Post 16 education/training. However, the number of places in all educational settings are limited, which means that it may not always be possible to allocate your son/daughter a place at their preferred placement. Therefore options for placements should be maximised and we recommend four preferences are stated on the preference form. You can state up to four preferences. Birmingham LA must comply with your son/daughter’s preference for a local college or sixth form unless: • The placement is unsuitable to their age, ability, aptitude or SEN, or • The placement would be incompatible with the efficient education of the other young people with whom they would be educated, or • The placement would be incompatible with the efficient use of resources.